Dream a Little Dream to Save Me
by dead-end-moon-angel
Summary: My 1st Fanfic; When everything goes wrong for Zim, he turns to a recurring dream, and something's wrong with Gaz. Eventual ZAGR, R&R pretty please, no flames...
1. The Stranger

Okay this is my first fanfic, not counting the Power Ranger fanfic I did when I was like 11....anyway, this is suppose to take place when Gaz is about 15 and Zim znd Dib are about 17. What else...?? Oh yeah, I guess I have to say here that I don't own Invader Zim or any of the other characters in this story.

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**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXThe StrangerXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX  
**

"Help…Save me…"  
  
"Who are you?!!" he cried. "Who are you?"  
  
He ran, following the soft voice that called to him. Running, until he came upon a beach. The sand was white looking more like snow, and the ocean shimmered and sparkled, reflecting the moon and the multitude of stars in the sky. A gentle breeze swayed the nearby trees and circled around him, almost caressing him. As he surveyed what was before him, he saw the figure facing the water. It stood there, motionless, draped in a dark, hooded cloak.  
  
"Help…Save me…" the voice softly pleaded.  
  
Where is that blasted voice coming from, he thought. Is that stranger calling me? He'd been following the voice, trying in vain to figure out who dared to bother him in this manner.  
  
"Who are you?!!"  
  
Without waiting for a response, he charged towards the stranger to finally put an end to this madness…  
  
"You will be sorry you messed with the li--!!!"  
  
He awoke, and once again, the cloaked stranger managed to elude him.

****

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Hurry up, Gaz!!!"  
  
"Bite me Dib!"

Gaz hated getting up in the morning and hated it even more to be rushed. She looked in the mirror, brushing her long, violet hair. "Stupid hair, stupid school, stupid Dib!!!" Gaz threw her brush on the floor in frustration. She looked back at the mirror; but frustrated with what?  
  
Dib impatiently waited at the bottom of the stairs for his younger sister to get ready for school. It wasn't getting to class late that bothered him, indeed not. It was something, actually someone, else and his name was Zim. Just thinking about the alien made him angry enough to urge his sister again to hurry up.  
  
"Gaz!!! If you're not ready in the next five minutes, I'm leaving without you!!!"  
  
I need to be there and keep an eye on him, Dib thought. He put it upon himself to protect the Earth from Zim's schemes of conquest and to expose him for what he really was to the rest of the world. Now, if only someone would believe what he knew about Zim…  
  
Dib failed to see a boot sail down towards him, which whacked him hard in the face. As he put his hand over his eye and winced, Gaz came down the stairs and grabbed her book bag, without saying a single word. Still wincing, Dib followed his sister out the door, making their way to school.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Zim was exhausted. Planning the conquest of a planet was not easy. It also didn't help that he hadn't been sleeping well for the past week or so. He could barely stay up in his classes, much less work on a plan to conquer the Earth. Somehow, he had managed to get to first period English Lit on time. He rubbed his eyes carefully so as not to disturb his contact lenses too much. As he sat at his desk, he saw Dib enter the class, glaring at him.  
  
"Hello, Zim," Dib said snidely. "Ready to fail at conquering Earth? 'Cuz you know that I'm gonna watch you and sabotage whatever you plan!"  
  
"Stupid Dib monkey!!" Zim countered sleepily. "Do you really think you can stop the mighty ZIM?!!"  
  
Then he yawned.  
  
"Kind of hard to take over Earth when you can barely stay up for Lit!" Dib quipped.  
  
Class was starting, and the teacher instructed the students to pull out their texts; they were to read A Midsummer's Night Dream. Dib looked over at Zim, expecting a dumb response. But Zim stayed silent; he was dozing off. It was very un-Zim like. A little bewildered, Dib turned his attention to the teacher.  
****

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Gaz was already seated at their usual lunch table, playing her GameSlave while munching on what looked like a questionable lunch. Dib soon joined her, and of course started to immediately rant about Zim.  
  
"Gaz…he's planning something. I know he hasn't done anything to prove that in the last few days, but he's just waiting for everybody's guard to be down. Not me, Gaz!! I'm gonna be ready for him and whatever evil scheme he's concocting!!"  
  
With that, Gaz got up from the table and walked away, eyes still glued to her GameSlave.  
  
"What did I say?" Dib called after his sister. He failed to notice a small tear running down her cheek.  
  
But his attention then focused to Zim, who was seated at a table near by. Zim wasn't eating the lunch in front of him, but then again, that wasn't a complete shocker. However, Dib notice Zim doodling on a piece of paper; what exactly, he couldn't make out. He was too far to see.  
  
"What is he planning?" muttered Dib under his breath. Before he had a chance to go over and investigate, a bell rang. The lunch period was over. All the kids were picking up their trays and leaving, including Zim. The paper he been working on had been left behind on the table. As he picked up his tray, Dib brushed by the table the alien had occupied. With no one looking, he snatched the paper, shoved it into his trench coat pocket, and left the cafeteria.

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Okay...sorry it was short, but I will have chapter 2 up within a couple of days!!! If I keep writing this depends on how many people actually R & R. Please don't flame, but I will accept constructive criticism.


	2. The Picture

Okay, this chapter is a little more angsty than I thought (wait til you get to the end, and you'll see what I mean), so I raised the rating. This chapter was very easy to write for me...hopefully the next chapter will be to. Again don't own any of it, though I tearfully wish I did. Enjoy!

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXThe PictureXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"Just a little more shading, and I'll be done with this stupid homework," said Gaz to no one in particular.  
  
It was just after seven and Gaz was hard at work on her computer class project. She had been slacking off on her homework lately, and several of her teachers brought it to her attention. Worried about failing, she vowed that she would try harder in all her classes. Seated at the computer in the living room, she completed the assignment.  
  
"Save and done. Finally, and with enough of the evening left to enjoy." Gaz wasted no time to log in and play against some online gamers.  
  
At that moment, she heard the front door open and slam. It's Dib, she thought. Their father hardly came home before 3 a.m., if at all. He would often just stay at his lab through the night. Then again, Dib often would stay out at all hours of the night chasing stupid leads on Bigfoot, or just hanging out with his stupid, loser friends. She was used to being left on her own…so why did it bother her?  
  
"Gaz!!!"  
  
"What do you want?" Gaz didn't take her eyes off the screen.  
  
"I need the computer, so get off it!"  
  
"I was here first, Dib."  
  
"But the fate of the world depends on me using this computer!"  
  
"Shut up Dib! Your voice is stupid! Besides, didn't Dad buy you a brand new computer?"  
  
"I need this one!"  
  
To his surprise, Gaz logged off, picked up her books, and angrily stormed off. Usually she would put up a fight, not giving in easily, and she didn't give up often. And why didn't Gaz threaten his life like she usually did? Dib shrugged those thoughts off and sat at the computer. He could have used his computer, but the one in front of him had a scanner, which he needed right then. From his math book, Dib pulled out a wrinkled, scrap of paper. He had obviously tried to smooth it out as much as possible, and just figured that he should just scan the damn thing to get a clearer copy.  
  
"Now, let's see what Zim is trying to pull…"  
  
On the screen, a pen sketch appeared. It looked a little hurried, but quite detailed. It was of a beach, with swaying trees. There was a sky with a full moon and many stars, and water that shimmered; it looked, well, beautiful. Had Zim really drawn this? Dib thought. This was definitely very un-Zim like. He then noticed the figure by the water. It just stood there, covered in a hooded robe.

Dib slumped in his chair.

"What is this?" The figure bore no resemblance to anyone. "Was he bored enough to draw some weird picture during lunch? What happened to planning Earth's demise? Then again, I should be relieved…"  
  
Dib printed a copy of the sketch, putting the original copy in his tattered, black binder. As he clicked the scanning program closed, he noticed a new file icon on the desktop. Must be Gaz's, he thought. Without thinking, he clicked open the file. The picture was quite good, almost three-dimensional; probably because of the way Gaz had filled the picture with the right colors. Then, Dib's mouth dropped. It was now the contents of Gaz's homework that nabbed his attention: it was identical to Zim's sketch. From the full moon to the dark stranger standing near the water, it was the same picture. He looked at the time stamp on Gaz's file. 7:10 p.m.  
  
"How could they both have the same drawing? There's just no way they saw each other's pictures! Zim drew this during lunch; she walked away with her eyes glued to that stupid video game."  
  
Dib printed a copy of Gaz's computer project, and then closed the file. He looked at both pieces of artwork, dumbfounded. "So they drew the same thing. Should I be worried?" Dib looked at his watch; almost 8 p.m. He would have to worry about this later. He stuck both drawings in his binder, grabbed the remote, and sat in front of the TV. "Mysterious Mysteries" was about to start.

****

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**  
  
She stood in front of the mirror. "No one cares," she said quietly.

Two large tears rolled down Gaz's face. Suddenly, she got very angry with herself and wiped her tears with the back of her hand.

"You're an idiot," she said to her reflection. "Crying does nothing."

She sat on the counter of the bathroom sink and put her head in her hands.  
  
Suddenly, Gaz started looking around the bathroom, not quite sure what she was searching for. Her eyes finally rested upon the family's first aid kit. She pulled it out from the bottom shelf of the wicker stand. Though it looked new, it had been used a couple of times before. Once, she remembered, when Dib had fallen of a tree spying on the neighbor. He suspected that their new next-door neighbor was a Yeti. While trying to get a closer look to snap a picture, the branch he was on snapped and down he went. It wasn't such a bad fall; all he suffered was a bump on the head, but their father had been there with the ice bag. Another time, Gaz herself had scraped her knee while skateboarding just outside of the house. Her board threw her off when it hit a lifted part in the sidewalk as she sped up. Gaz had been alone, and had to hobble back inside to get to the first aid kit. She remembered sitting on the front stoop, pouring some Betadine on her bleeding knee to flush out the germs. She wrapped it up with some gauze and a bandage, pleased that she could take care of herself, but also a little sad about no one else being around to comfort her.  
  
Gaz snapped back to the present, and gingerly opened up the kit, and spied the scissors inside. "They still should be sharp enough," she whispered, as if afraid that someone would over hear. She sat on the bathroom floor, crossed leg with scissors in hand. The blades caught the light as she held them up. She hesitated, and then slowly rolled down her left sleeve.

"Who would care?" Gaz opened the scissors wide open and positioned the blade over her bare wrist.

"No one."

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Wow...OoO So what will happen? What did you think? Again, please no flames, but constructive criticism is appreciated! Hopefully I'll post my new chapter this weekend. Later...


	3. The Reject

Hello again to whoever reads this thing. This new chapter is probably just as angsty if not more so than the second chapter. This new chapter deals almost exclusively with Zim; I hope it's not too ooc. Please don't flame, I'm still new at this. Again, I don't own anything regarding Invader Zim, oh but how I wish I did!! please R & R.  
  
**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXThe RejectXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"I've seen this before."

"Mysterious Mysteries" had ended and making sure that Gaz was not around, Dib was again looking at the pictures he had tucked away in his binder. It had occurred to him as he watched the show; the area depicted was familiar to him, but Dib couldn't for the life of him figure out how or why…  
  
**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX  
**  
Zim stared at the blank screen, with a look of disbelief on his face. That very morning, his biggest problem had been being almost late for school and not having the energy to plan an invasion of Earth, all caused by trouble sleeping. Now he sat there, realizing all that just became the very least of his worries.  
  
Zim had been contacting the Tallest for Irken reinforcements for his latest attempt to invade Earth, and had been waiting for a response guaranteeing him back up for the invasion. Instead, he received an unexpected message from his superiors.  
  
"We're not sending any of the armada to help you, Zim," started the transmission. "Not now, not ever. We never intended invasion for that measly, dirt planet; you were in the way and we needed a way to get rid of you. We're surprised you have survived on that planet this long; you should have been dead before you reached Earth! This message is to inform you to not bother contacting us any longer. You are also banished from Irk, for good this time, not like when you came back after Operation Impending Doom I. Violate this and consequences will be severe."  
  
"Nobody betrays the mighty ZIM!!!" he had shouted after the transmission ended, but the truth behind his "mission" suddenly hit him…hard.  
  
I was lied to, he thought, putting his head in his hands. I was an annoyance, and they wanted to be rid of me. They never expected me to make it back to Irk.  
  
"They left me to die…"  
  
He lingered on the last word he spoke. Die…his own people wanted him gone, permanently. He slowly rose from the chair he sat in and walked around looking at the various relics from his numerous, past failed attempts in conquering Earth.  
  
"Six Earth years on this pathetic planet," he muttered bitterly. "And for what?"  
  
He finally walked to the elevator and went upstairs.  
  
**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**  
  
In the kitchen, he found Gir cooking…something; Zim wasn't too sure exactly what. The mixer was on, splattering some kind of lumpy mixture all over the kitchen walls. Zim also saw that the stove was on, and smoke was rising from an empty skillet that was on the hot range. Gir was at the table, cracking eggs into a bowl, tossing the dripping shells on the floor. Zim walked towards Gir, and felt his shoe sticking to the linoleum. He looked down and saw that something sticky (Honey? Maple syrup? The paste?) had been spilled on the floor, and he was standing in it. Zim could feel his rage boiling over.  
  
"GIR!!!!"  
  
Gir turned around with his mixing bowl in one hand and an egg in the other. "Hi!!!" greeted the little robot. "I'm makin' pancakes!!!"  
  
"Look at this mess!!!"  
  
"Awww…you had a bad day? Someone needs a hug!" Gir dropped what was in his hands and jumped on Zim.  
  
"Get off me! Get off me!" Zim yelled as he ran around the kitchen. Gir wouldn't let go.  
  
"Ya shouldna be so mad, Master!!! We gonna have pancakes, we gonna have pancakes…" Gir sang.  
  
Finally, Zim managed to get Gir off him. "Gir, you will listen to Zim!! Clean up this mess immediately or I…will…uh…disassemble you!!!"  
  
"But-" Gir's large, turquoise eyes filled with tears.  
  
"GIR, NOW!!!!"

Zim turned around and walked into the living room, taking a seat on the couch. The television was on, and Gir had turned the mixer back on, obviously ignoring his orders. Zim didn't pay attention, or just did not care. He lied on the couch, and stared at the ceiling. He was disheartened, angry and felt...worthless. He had been bred and trained all his life to be a mighty Irken invader, nothing else. And he had tried his hardest, but it had all been pointless. What else was there for him?  
  
Zim sighed deeply.  
  
For the first time ever in his life, Zim felt like he had no reason to go on living. His thoughts turned to ending his life; suicide is what the humans call it, he thought. In Irk, hardly anyone ever attempted doing such a thing. For an invader to die by his or her own hands was a sign of disgrace and considered a coward's death. An Irken would rather die in a war, assured that he or she would die with honor.

That is all irrelevant now, Zim thought. His own people didn't care about him, and certainly not the human beasts that populated this planet; Dib was a prime example. He was alone, and that thought produced a sharp pain inside of him that he could not explain or had ever felt. He closed his eyes waiting for this new feeling to subside, hating himself for causing it. Yes, it will be for the best, he thought. But how to go about it: slashed wrists, a lethal poison he could concoct, or soaking in a corrosive H2O bath? He felt his eyes slowly becoming heavy, his thoughts beginning to get all muddled.  
  
"Tomorrow," he yawned, "it will end."  
  
He let fatigue take over his body…take over his mind…  
  
**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**  
  
He was running through a dark forest, blindly pushing through bushes and branches.  
  
"Help…Save me…"  
  
"Who are you!!?"  
  
He came to the end of the forest, stepping onto a beach. The sand was white looking more like snow, and the ocean shimmered and sparkled, reflecting the moon and the multitude of stars in the sky. A gentle breeze swayed the nearby trees and circled around him, almost caressing him. As he surveyed what was before him, he looked in the direction of the water. Again, the cloaked stranger was there, beckoning to him.  
  
"Help…Save me…"  
  
"Why do you anger the mighty ZIM? I will rain doom upon your head!!"  
  
He charged towards the stranger. Just as he was inches away from the stranger, it disappeared, and he fell into the deep, dark water…  
  
"AAAHHH!!!!"  
  
…And landed on his living room floor. He sat up, rubbing his superior head. He realized he had fallen off the couch during his dream, that same, infernal dream he had been having every night for over a week.  
  
"That is it!!!" Zim exclaimed, waving his fist in the air. "This dream has toyed with Zim long enough!!  
  
Something then jumped on his shoulders.

"Wakey, wakey Master!!!"

It was Gir, and he was holding on to Zim's head while holding a large stack of pancakes dripping with maple syrup. "Hungry?" Zim got up quickly, causing the little robot to fall over. He looked over to the clock. 4 a.m. on the dot. He still had a few hours left before school started.  
  
"Gir!!"  
  
The little robot's eyes flared red. "Yes, Master?"  
  
"Come with me!!" Zim walked towards his elevator/toilet with Gir at his heels, eating the pancakes. "As of today, that dream will not plague me again," he vowed.  
  
It seemed as if Zim had forgotten his bout with depression from the previous night; he appeared to be his old, overly, egotistical invader self. But as he made it down to his underground lab, he made a decision.  
  
Once I defeat these dreams, he thought grimly, Zim will be no more.  
  
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Okay...it was a bit depressing. I was a bit down when I wrote it, that's my excuse for it anyway...It's getting hard to write this...I really have to use all my creative energy for this. It really helps when people R & R, so please do so now!!! Again, no flames...


	4. The Save

Here's the next installment...it's not too angsty I guess...Enjoy!!

Never owned it...wish I did....

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXThe SaveXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Zim walked up the high school steps, deep in thought. He didn't notice Dib following, quietly, right behind him.  
  
Earlier that morning, Zim had asked the computer to look up everything and anything regarding dreams. When the result list had yielded more than enough information, Zim became a little discouraged. " Now what?!" Trying to come up with another idea, he suddenly exclaimed, "Computer, look up dream control!!" As the computer searched, Zim let his mind wander back to the transmission he received last night…  
  
_You were in the way and we needed a way to get rid of you...We're surprised you have survived on that planet this long...you should have been dead before you reached Earth…_  
  
"If they really wanted to be rid of me," he said bitterly, "why did they not just terminate me when I was on Irk instead of sending me to this stupid planet, alone?" Again, that same, sharp pain cut right through him, taking his breath away. He wrapped his arms around himself and closed his eyes tightly, rocking himself and waiting for the pain to go away.

"Why does this keep happening? Why does it keep hurting so MUCH?!!" Then, he heard:  
  
"Computer search completed."  
  
Zim's attention immediately focused back on the computer as he looked through the result list; his pain had vanished as fast as it had hit him. A particular entry caught his interest. "'Lucid dreaming,'" Zim started reading off the screen. "'The phenomenon of lucid dreaming occurs when dreamers become aware that they are in the midst of a dream. The most unusual aspect of this state is that lucid dreamers can consciously alter the content of their dreams.'" He stopped there, and re-read those sentences again. "I can control my dreams?" Zim said softly.  
  
"You can control your dreams?!!!" Gir screamed, popping up right next to him. Zim had forgotten the robot was in the lab with him and had over heard what he had said.  
  
"I am the mighty ZIM," he cried. "Of course I can control puny dreams!!! Now leave me alone!!" Gir wouldn't move. "How about you go and destroy something, Gir," Zim said, motioning to him to leave.  
  
"Yaaaay!!!" Gir bounded off happily; a crash was heard somewhere upstairs. The noise didn't faze Zim. Well, he thought as he continued reading, at least I think I can try and control them now.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**  
  
Dib had continued following Zim. He noticed the new clothes that Zim was wearing. The strange, pink, striped outfit he had always worn was gone. In its place, Zim wore a dark gray t-shirt, a dark blue jacket and a pair of baggy jeans. Zim had ditched his Irken uniform for a more human look; there wasn't a point in wearing it anymore after the truth came out, and wearing the uniform would just conjure up more resentment in him. The black gloves remained, though. Dib followed him all the way to his locker, cornering him.  
  
Gaz was watching from afar as Dib stalked Zim. Doesn't Dib get tired after all this time, she thought. She never really cared about the whole "Dib exposing Zim as an alien," unless it somehow involved her. But lately it bothered her, considering Zim hadn't done anything as of late that would fall under the "take over the world" category. And since Zim was such a loner, he had no one to help defend him, which didn't seem all that fair to her. She put her hand to the skull necklace she had always worn, and a small smile appeared on her face. She slammed her locker door shut and walked to the water fountain that was right next to Zim's locker. She bent to drink, but she kept her eyes and ears on Dib.  
  
"So, Zim…" said Dib mockingly, "did you get enough sleep? Don't wanna fall asleep during the invasion!!"  
  
"Invasion."

One of the last words Zim did not want to hear right then. Zim tensed up, but said nothing.

"I'm gonna make you talk, Zim," Dib continued, "and I will find out what you're up to."  
  
Stop Dib, Gaz thought as she watched silently, please just stop, you moron.  
  
Zim was becoming more and more angry, but he was in no mood to play this game with Dib.

"Leave me alone, earth-stink. I want nothing to do with you right now."  
  
He closed his locker and started to walk away. Dib was surprised by the alien's reaction, but quickly grabbed Zim by his jacket and slammed him against the locker. Other students in the hallway, hearing the commotion, were now watching, perhaps thinking a fight was about to start.  
  
"You're not walking away," Dib sneered, "not until you answer some questions."  
  
Gaz had seen enough. Strategically aiming at her brother, and avoiding Zim, she put her thumb over the water fountain spout and squirted a stream of water in Dib's face. Giving a small yelp, he loosened his grip on Zim and looked to the direction of the source. Gaz was standing next to the water fountain, and Dib looked at her with utter shock. Zim stood there, looking both surprised and a little amused. Everyone else who had been watching started to laugh and ridiculed Dib.

"...his weird little sister totally burned him..."

"What a loser!"

"What happened to my breakfast burrito?"  
  
"Gaz…wh…" Dib started, but Gaz was already walking to her first class. Zim stared after her, watching her long, violet hair swinging behind her. He then turned around, and walked to his class, chuckling to himself. That earth creature is not so bad, he thought. Dib stood rooted in the same spot, water dripping down his face, trying to figure out what just happened.  
  
Zim thought about Gaz's little stunt, until he got to his seat. Then his mind went back to gaining control of his dreams; he had come across a technique during his research, and was figuring out how he would use it, and wondering if it would even succeed. Dib entered the classroom, a little damp and still fuming. He had gone to the washroom, drying himself as much as he could, but his t-shirt was still wet.

What is up with Gaz, he thought as he took his seat. He spied Zim immediately, and saw him scribbling something out. Now what was is he doing? It could be another sketch, he thought, but I should still keep an eye on him. The teacher was starting class, explaining something about the scene the students were suppose to be reading from A Midsummer's Night Dream. Zim paid no attention; this new "mission" was more important.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**  
  
Gaz stared back at Zim from her usual lunch table. He sat there, picking at his food, like he had always did. Gaz was not ignorant; she had known for a long time Zim was not human. That's why she had been so careful in not getting him wet earlier that morning. How could she not have known the truth about Zim? Her brother was always ranting and raving about it, year after year. Plus, she had seen him without his obvious disguise. As Gaz looked at him, she noticed something…off. It wasn't the new outfit that he wore (although that did raise some other questions); it was the way that he carried himself. She had noticed it this morning during the altercation with her stupid brother, but it was more obvious now. He sat slumped over, and he had a downcast expression clouding his face, which was a major change from his usually vain, big ego personality.  
  
"I guess I'm not the only one having a crappy day," she commented, pulling out her Game Slave.  
  
Dib arrived with his lunch tray, and sat next to his sister. He had gotten over what she did to him that morning, though he still wondered why she had helped Zim; she never showed any kind of sympathy towards anyone, much less her own brother. He looked over at Zim, who was still playing around with the food in front of him. Why doesn't anyone see else it, he wondered, as he turned to his sister. She was absorbed with the game she played, and Dib wondered how Gaz could totally let herself be immersed in them. She'll have to face reality some time, he thought. Then he noticed something that caught him completely off guard.  
  
"Gaz…wh…wh…wh…"  
  
"Spit it out, Dib. You sound like an idiot."  
  
"Your wrist!!"  
  
Gaz's sleeve had gone up a little as she moved her arm playing her video game, and Dib saw what looked like part of a bad cut on her wrist. Gaz froze for a moment, then paused her game and pulled her sleeve far enough to expose only her left wrist. The wound looked recent, and it didn't appear too deep.  
  
"This," she said coolly while pointing to the cut, "I accidentally cut myself with my art knife yesterday during art class." She rolled her sleeve back down, picked up her game and resumed playing. "I'm fine Dib, so shut up."  
  
Dib looked at his sister, then turned back to his lunch. He wasn't really convinced, but he wasn't sure if he should press her with any more questions.

So he picked up his spork, and ate his lunch silently.

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Okay...so what ya think? R & R please!


	5. The Image

Hello to all and thanks for reading!! Anyway, this is the next chapter...I guess it takes turns focusing on different characters. Sorry about the amount of time I waited to post this up. I had a medical emergency with my dog, so I had to put off writing this for a while. It's amazing the kind of inspiration and ideas that hit you while at the vet. But my dog is now recovering and should be fine. And Hopefully, Gaz, Dib, and Zim don't seem too OOC.  
  
**SIGH**  
  
Oh yeah...I own none of this Invader Zim stuff, except the new IZ arm warmers I just got...hee. Now, on with the show!!!!  
  
**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXThe ImageXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**  
  
"Hello?"  
  
Gaz walked inside her house, not really expecting a reply. No one was home. The only sound she heard in the house were her own foot steps and the front door she slammed behind her.  
  
"The worse is over…at least for this miserable day."  
  
She bent down to pick up the mail off the floor and shuffled through it as she made her way into the kitchen.  
  
"Cable bill, phone bill, stupid paranormal magazine for Dib, junk, crap…"  
  
Nothing for her...  
  
She dumped the mail on the kitchen table and opened the refrigerator, taking a can of pop.  
  
"Dib didn't take the last one," she observed. Gaz pulled the tab, took a drink and headed to her bedroom.  
  
**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**  
  
Entering her bedroom, Gaz tossed her bag on the floor and sat on her bed, taking a swig from her drink. She looked around her room. With the heavy metal posters and dark colors that decorated her surroundings, any outsider may think of the room as incredibly dreary and creepy. To Gaz, this was a refuge where she could be alone and not have to deal with anybody else's troubles but her own. It was her own world, and no one else was allowed in it.  
  
Gaz started feeling a little warm, so she pushed her sleeves up, then froze as her hand brushed the new scab on her left wrist.  
  
He almost found out, she thought as she looked at her injured wrist.  
  
"How could I've been so stupid? Why didn't I just bandage it up?"  
  
She touched the wound cautiously and closed her eyes.  
  
"Maybe Dib will forget about it," she mumbled, "it's not like he cares."  
  
Speaking of Dib, instead of walking home from school with her like he normally did, he went off with some of his loser friends. She did not bother questioning Dib about where he was going; she figured the less she knew, the better off she was when it came to her dealing with her older brother.  
  
"Whatever."  
  
Gaz put her soda can on the nightstand and began poking under her bed. Past some shoes and a couple of empty soda cans, she saw her sketchbook, pulled it out and started looking for a piece of charcoal in the art box she also kept under there. As she rummaged through the box, she felt she had gotten a hold of something. When she pulled her hand out of the box, she saw she wasn't holding the charcoal she had wanted; she held the old art knife she kept in there. She looked at the knife intently, almost entranced as she stared at the blade. She slowly fingered it but then dropped the knife back into the box, and quickly shoved it under her bed.  
  
Gaz sat up on her bed again, took another swig of her soda and stood up. She pushed her hair away from her eyes. I need to clear my head, she thought. She started to pace back and forth in her room, and then eyed her full-length mirror that stood near her closet with a bit of disdain.  
  
"Why did I ever get this?"  
  
Gaz walked up to the mirror. Then she turned around and rolled her eyes; why bother, she thought. About to walk away, but unable to resist, she stood in front of it, and took a good look at herself.  
  
She wasn't that tall, probably 5 feet and maybe 2, 3 inches tops. She wore a black skirt, a dark purple long sleeve shirt and a black tank over that. She also wore her fishnet stockings and, of course, her black boots. Gaz doubtfully stared at her face, and then the rest of her. She wasn't ugly at all…as a matter of fact, she was quite beautiful. But it really didn't matter how pretty she looked, everyone at school had long ago deemed her a complete freak. And who'd wanna hang out with a freak, she thought.  
  
She lightly touched her fingers to her lips and a thought crossed her mind.  
  
"15 and I've never been kissed." She smiled sadly. "Who am I kidding? I've never even had a boyfriend."  
  
She thought of the boys at school and scoffed at the idea of going out with any of them.  
  
Then she started thinking about something else, the same thought that crossed her mind the previous night… something more important than a boyfriend…

…Gaz never had a real friend.  
  
She never had someone to confide in, joke around or play video games with. How pathetic is that, she thought.  
  
People did not become friends with Gaz Membrane; they just turned the other direction when they saw her approach. Sure, she sat with Dib during lunch and stuff, but he was her brother and it's not like they shared the same interests or anything, except DNA and that could be debated.  
  
Besides, lately he was hardly ever around…  
  
"Not much of a friend," she said, "and even less of a brother."  
  
Her thoughts went back to that morning's incident with her brother and Zim. Her actions were unexplainable then, and still so at that moment as she stood in front of that mirror. She had never helped anybody out like that before, but something at that moment had compelled her to help her brother's enemy.  
  
Gaz sat back on her bed and drank from her soda can. She put her hand over her skull necklace and closed her eyes…  
  
_"Mommy?"  
  
"Yes little one?" She turned to look at her little daughter, who had tears streaming down her face. "What's wrong?"  
  
"No one ever wants to play with me or be my friend. 'Cept Dib, and that's cuz he's weird, has a big head and has no friends, too"  
  
The young woman bent down to meet her daughter's gaze, wiped her tears and smiled gently.  
  
"Not a nice thing to say about your brother," she laughed softly while stroking her child's cheek.  
  
"My little Gaz, the best way to make a friend is to be one."  
  
"But what if that doesn't works," Gaz cried.  
  
"Then, you try again, sweetie." She picked up Gaz and hugged her. "It's not always easy, but it's not impossible."  
  
"Really, Mommy?"  
  
"Really, baby. And you know what?"  
  
"What," asked Gaz, looking at her mother expectantly.  
  
"Sometimes you become friends with the people you least expect."_  
  
Gaz opened her eyes and drank the rest of her soda. She pulled out her sketchbook again and found a pencil in her book bag.  
  
She knew what she had to do.  
  
**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX  
**  
Dib sat on a park bench. He had agreed to go to the movies with his friends, but at the last minute made up a lame excuse about doing some history homework. Dib just wanted to be alone with his thoughts. What is wrong with Gaz, he thought to himself. The way she had behaved that morning was unusual, but that cut on her wrist concerned him even more.  
  
"She said it was an accident…I mean, do I really have any reason not to believe her?"  
  
She would never purposely do something that stupid…that reckless. Gaz was strange at times, but who wasn't in high school?  
  
Dib sighed deeply.  
  
He heard what people had to say about her at school. He was teased himself and made fun of behind his back, but that was nothing compared to Gaz. She was the school's freak show, and was always reminded of it by one idiot or another. Actually, that had been the real reason why he had decided against going to the movies.  
  
He and his friends had been talking about girls at school they'd sleep with in a heartbeat. Well, one of them said the wrong thing…  
  
"You know, Dib," said Cal, who looked like he couldn't get a date if his life depended on it, "your sister is pretty hot. If she wasn't such a vampire wanna-be, I'd nail her like that!"  
  
"Don't you know anything, Cal," said another one. "Just turn off the lights and close your eyes while you're doing her!"  
  
All their friends had cracked up at that statement, backing it up with other lewd and disrespectful comments. Dib didn't say anything at that moment, not even attempting to once defend his sister, and regretted it as he sat on the park bench.  
  
"Some brother I am."  
  
But this was Gaz, the same girl who'd shut out the rest of the world while playing her Game Slave, or when she drew in her sketchbook every now and then. No, Dib thought, Gaz is a lot tougher than I think. She's perfectly fine.  
  
With his conscience cleared, he got up and walked home. Dib needed to figure out a certain Irken's plans for world domination.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX  
**  
"Gir, where are you going?"  
  
"Party! Party! Party!"  
  
Gir was dressed up in his green dog disguise and was getting ready to go out for the evening. Zim shook his head. Why even bother asking, he thought, it's not like the "mission" is at stake anymore.  
  
"Fine, just be sure to get home at a decent hour."  
  
They both heard a car horn honking just outside.  
  
"They're here," Gir said excitedly, "bye!!!" He ran off and slammed the door behind him.  
  
With that, Zim was left alone and had the perfect opportunity to put his plan into motion.  
  
He went to his room, and changed into his pajamas. He looked through his book bag and found the notes he had made in Lit class. He also pulled out something else. Since the second time he had the recurring dream, Zim had been writing down the details of the dreams he had everyday. He normally would write them down on the first piece of paper he found or on his computer if that was the first thing he encountered in the morning. He wanted to keep his information all in one place, so he stopped by a stationary store and bought the dream journal he now was putting on the nightstand. He had spent the afternoon transferring all his dream details in the book.  
  
He put the journal on his nightstand, and sat back on his bed. Zim looked over his notes once again and also put those on the nightstand.  
  
All this preparing to go to sleep was a bit of a nuisance to Zim, but at this point he was pretty much used to it. Irkens, unlike humans, don't require sleep to survive, and Zim had been no different. But the years he spent on Earth and its strange atmosphere took a toll on him, making him more prone to exhaustion and fatigue. Zim started to fall asleep. At first, it was only for a couple of hours a week. Then an hour every other day. Soon, Zim was keeping a sleeping schedule similar to that of humans. It bothered him at first that he was becoming accustomed to the ways of these inferior creatures, but he grudgingly accepted it and the effects that came with sleeping, like dreaming.  
  
"Computer..."  
  
"What now?!"  
  
"I want you to set an alarm to go off on the hour, every hour throughout the night!"  
  
"Aarrgh...fine. Hourly alarm set."  
  
All that was left was for Zim was to wait for sleep to come to him….  
  
…. And that didn't come so easy tonight.  
  
This got him a bit upset.  
  
"How come I'm not asleep yet?! How dare Sleep try and evade my superior Irken being tonight?! It's the doing of that wretched dream!!!"  
  
Zim ranted and raved like this for several minutes, but that wasn't helping him fall asleep and he knew that. He finally settled down, and closed his eyes. He remembered that along with the dream information he looked up, he had read about some methods that claimed would help someone fall asleep.  
  
"Might as well put these silly human techniques to use," he said, as he racked his Irken brain for a particular technique.  
  
Then, it came to him.  
  
Zim closed his eyes, put his right-gloved hand on his abdomen and took a deep breath. He felt his hand and abdomen rise as he inhaled and fall as he exhaled slowly.  
  
Inhale…exhale…inhale… exhale…  
  
He continued doing this, concentrating on his breathing, and feeling his entire body becoming more and more relaxed. He almost felt like he was floating…  
  
Zim was out like a light in a matter of minutes.  
  
**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**  
  
He found himself on the beach again. The same beach he had been dreaming about for more than a week. He looked down and saw that he had a wristwatch. It read 11:45. Zim started walking towards the water, knowing full well who was going to appear. Immediately the voice called to him.  
  
"Help…save me…"  
  
Zim did not respond and kept walking. He heard a chime, stopped walking and looked back at his watch. Still 11:45. It was working; he had wanted the time to stay the same on his watch and it remained the same.  
  
Zim smirked.  
  
He was lucid dreaming now; he knew he was in a dream state and was slowly gaining the ability to control his dream. He looked back up and saw the figure appear by the water. Again, he heard the voice, but something was different this time.  
  
"Help…save me…"  
  
The voice is female, he thought, as he crept slowly towards the cloaked figure. Not that it really makes much of a difference; male or female, this dream has gone far enough.  
  
He was right behind the stranger. This…thing is not that big, he thought. Zim was right; the figure appeared to be a bit smaller than him. He slowly reached out to grab hold of a robed arm.  
  
"Now I've got you," Zim sneered.  
  
"No," said the stranger with the female voice, as it turned around. A ghostly white hand fell on Zim's shoulder and gripped tightly.  
  
"I've got _you_."  
  
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX  
  
I know it sucks to end it this way...darn cliffhangers!! I forgot to give credit for something I used in my last chapter. The lucid dream stuff that Zim reads was from a book I have called "The Dream Encyclopedia" by James R. Lewis. The book actually kind of inspired to write this. Another thing I should mention is that in this chapter, Zim uses a technique called "Reality Check." In a dream, to make sure you're still lucid, read something or check the time on a digital watch. If it changes, you're dreaming and not lucid. Hope this answers any questions anyone may have had while reading this. Again, please R & R!!!


	6. The Confrontation

Yay!! A new chapter!! Whoo!!! I don't think this is my best chapter, but I think it's the longest one I've written. I know I say this often, but I hope the characters aren't too OOC. Thanks for all the reviews...it makes me happy!! And about how I portrayed Gaz in the last chapter...I used kinda used my high school self as a model for her (although I'm actually shorter by a couple of inches than what I made Gaz).  
  
I don't own any of this stuff...wish I did though.  
  
Now, on with the show!!!!  
  
**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXThe ConfrontationXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**  
  
Zim was speechless, and could only stare back at the creature that was tightly holding his shoulder with a vice like grip.  
  
It's only a dream, he told himself. This dream creature cannot hurt me! I control it!!!  
  
But it was hurting him and Zim was trying his hardest not to grimace or cry out from the pain.  
  
"So, why have you come to disturb me," asked the stranger in a menacing tone.  
  
"I should be asking you the same question, stink beast," Zim replied, staring at his captor.  
  
He tried to get a good look at the stranger's face, but the hood covered up most of it. He was able to make out its mouth, but only with help from the moonlight.  
  
"You are in no position to be speaking to me that way."  
  
The smug attitude of the creature angered him.  
  
"Let me go or you'll incur the wrath of ZIM!"  
  
The stranger continued to hold on to him and appeared to be looking right at him, as if studying him, but of course he had no way of being sure. Zim struggled to loosen himself from the stranger's grasp, but it did him no good; it was too strong, and the more he struggled, the tighter the grip on his shoulder became. The creature obviously did not seem to want to let go of the alien. Not wanting to, Zim started to feel regretful that he had gotten himself in this position, but just as quickly decided that the situation may be for the best.  
  
"I want to die and be done with it," he said more to himself than to his captor. He looked at the hooded being. "Just end my miserable life. You'd be doing me a great favor."  
  
Zim had no clue if he would physically die due to the dream, but resigned himself to what he felt was sure to be his demise.  
  
Then, to his surprise, the stranger let go of his shoulder and took a few steps back. Zim was unsure if he had unwittingly willed it to happen, and became curious. He carefully took a step towards the stranger.  
  
"Tell me, who are you?"  
  
It felt like a lifetime passed as Zim waited for some kind of response on that familiar beach. A chime was heard, and he inconspicuously glanced at his watch. To his surprise, the time had not changed. The stranger continued to stand there unwavering, until finally:  
  
"My name is Penelope."  
  
Zim was stunned that the stranger had actually answered, and the tone of voice had become gentle. This has to be some kind of trick, he thought. Yet, he took another step forward towards the stranger.  
  
"Okay, Penelope...." Zim almost spat out. "Why do you disturb the great ZIM?! What is the meaning of bothering me as I slumber?!"  
  
"I can't tell you that," Penelope whispered, as she walked slowly towards Zim.  
  
"And why can't you?!"  
  
"Because now I'm not even sure of the reason myself."  
  
Zim did not know what to say, but walked towards Penelope until they were both standing inches from each other. He was a head taller than the creature, but some how felt that she had the upper hand. He brushed the thought away.  
  
"Then remove your... hood...thing. "  
  
Penelope shook her head. "No, I can't. At least, not now."  
  
Zim tapped his chin thoughtfully.  
  
"Are you a female?"  
  
He heard Penelope laughing and saw her shoulders shake. He didn't find the question at all funny and became indignant. "Why do you laugh?! I did not say anything humorous."  
  
Penelope stopped laughing and said, "You didn't say anything funny. Your question just took me by surprise. I guess you can say I'm female."  
  
Zim started walking to the water, and stopped just at the edge where he could safely stand and look at his reflection. He was wearing his human disguise, and seeing this made him grin. He had wanted to appear in his dream with the disguise on, and he apparently made it happen. Then how come she didn't take off the cloak when I demanded her to, he thought. He promptly turned to Penelope.  
  
"So, will you at least tell me why you wear that hood," Zim asked, glaring at her. "What is it that you hide?!"  
  
"Who are you to ask that, Zim, when you are hiding yourself. "  
  
Zim raised a non-existent eyebrow.  
  
"I hide nothing!!!"  
  
Penelope motioned that he look into the water again. Zim was getting ticked off.  
  
"What kind of games are you playing, stupid dream creature?"  
  
"Just humor me."  
  
Zim turned back around and looked at his reflection again.  
  
His mouth dropped open in disbelief.  
  
"Where did my disgui..."  
  
"You can't hide in this world, Zim," she said, cutting him off. "Sooner or later, the truth is revealed when one comes here."  
  
Zim continued to look at his reflection; now two large, ruby-colored eyes were staring right back at him and his antennae were sticking up where the wig had been. He heard a chime go off, and immediately looked back at the wristwatch. It read 12:01. I'm losing control over it, he thought. He turned to Penelope, who had been standing right behind him. She put her hands lightly on his shoulders, her soft touch sending a strange sensation through him.  
  
"I'm sorry."  
  
Zim looked at her, confused and irritated. "Sorry for what?"  
  
"For this."  
  
Penelope pushed him into the dark water without hesitating. He felt pain flooding through him, as the acidic water burned his skin. He struggled to get out, but felt himself sinking further down, drowning in a sea of black, and quickly losing consciousness. He heard Penelope's voice again.  
  
"Next time," was all she said.  
  
**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**  
  
Zim stood in front of his locker, trying to remember the combination. He was out of sorts that morning; his mind was racing a million thoughts a minute. Out of frustration, he gave it a hard kick. He took a deep breath to keep from yelling like a maniac.  
  
Who was she, he thought. What is she? How did she control everything so well? Maybe because I'm new to this dream control, and she was just a figment of my dream...  
  
He opened his locker finally, and saw something blue flutter out, landing on his shoe. He bent to pick it up. It was a note that had been folded in half, and it was addressed to him. Curious, he unfolded the note and read the neat, cursive writing.  
  
Zim—  
  
At lunch, meet me at the library. I'll be in the Music and Art section. Don't be late. If you fail to show up, I will make you regret it.  
  
It wasn't signed.  
  
Zim looked around the hallway suspiciously, but noticed nothing unusual. He stuck the note in his back pocket, and got the things he needed out of his locker. He slammed it shut and walked off to his class.  
  
Who would've bothered sending me this note, he thought, looking at the different students that passed him by. For a moment, he considered Penelope, but quickly dismissed that ridiculous idea.  
  
Then, a light went off.  
  
This is probably some pathetic attempt by the Dib-worm to trap me, he deduced. If his enemy had gone through all that trouble, who was he to disappoint?  
  
"Okay, Dib, I'll play along."  
  
**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX  
**  
Dib was at a table, and around him sat his classmates creating their own works of art. Their art teacher, Mr. Biv, was busy organizing some upcoming school event, so he told his students that they could create whatever they wanted and submit that for an "A," as long as they did not disrupt class or drive him mad in any way. His students grabbed tempera paints, glue, clay, and whatever other materials were at their disposal and got down to work; many of them had failed the last assigned art project and really needed this break.  
  
Dib had been sculpting with the clay, thinking of making a model of the Chupacabra, but he didn't get that far. He was looking at someone a few tables away, and this someone was busy with the oil pastels.  
  
Dib got up and approached Zim's table, walking very slowly.  
  
Now's my chance, he thought.  
  
Zim was so engrossed in what he was doing; he didn't seem to notice Dib, who was now standing next to him and watching the piece that was being created. Dib was a little surprised at how Zim carefully picked and blended the colors he used, and how quickly the picture was being formed on that sheet of paper. He'd drawn a sky that was the color of dusk, grass that was so green and lush, and trees so life like, they'd tease anyone to climb on. And there were raindrops, small and delicate, slowly falling from the purplish-blue sky. Zim had created something that looked like it belonged on a wall in an art museum. Dib was so captivated, he had forgotten why he was there.  
  
Then it came to him, and he was about to speak, when...  
  
"So, Dib-worm, are you just going to stand there and gawk..."  
  
Zim looked up at Dib, giving him an arrogant look.  
  
"...Or do you actually have something of worth to mention to me here instead of the library?"  
  
Dib looked a little perplexed. Library?  
  
"What are you talking about? Library? You're right here!"  
  
Maybe the note wasn't from the monkey, Zim thought. He shrugged.  
  
Dib was fuming.  
  
"You know damn well what I want, Zim."  
  
Dib moved his face close to his enemy's.  
  
"I know you're planning something under handed, even though I haven't been able to find evidence. I won't rest until I found out what it is, and you're lying on a cold, metal table with me holding a scalpel over you."  
  
Zim stared back at Dib.  
  
"You've been making the same, idle threats for a long time, Dib. You cannot scare the great ZIM!! Just...give...up."  
  
One of girls in the class looked up from her water color painting and noticed what was going on with Dib and Zim. She frowned, got up from her seat, walked up to Dib and slapped the back of his big head.  
  
"You're gonna get us in trouble," she warned. The rest of the class gave him threatening looks.  
  
Dib, angry, was about to storm back to his table but noticed a large container filled with water on the art supply table. He grabbed it and went back to Zim's table.  
  
"I will not give up," yelled Dib, throwing the water in Zim's direction. Zim looked up at Dib, and tried to duck the water headed towards him.  
  
SPLASH!!!  
  
Dib's face changed from anger to alarm. Zim had dove under the table, so the water missed him completely. But it didn't miss Mr. Biv, who had just walked back into the room.  
  
The whole class went dead silent and everyone turned to Dib. Their teacher's face was red with anger.  
  
"Dib," started Mr. Biv, drying his face with the handkerchief he pulled from his pocket.  
  
"Mister..."  
  
"Don't, Dib. I don't want to know why you had the need of throwing water at anyone in the class."  
  
"But..."  
  
"You, young man, will be spending your lunch hour with me, for the rest of this week and next week. Any objections?"  
  
Dib hung his head. The class, including Zim, started to laugh. Dib eyed him, hatefully.  
  
You'll pay for this, he thought, as he walked back to his seat.  
  
**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**  
  
Gaz had told Dib that she was not going to make it to lunch that day. Her excuse was that she needed to research a topic for her history class, which was an outright lie, but it was not like he would care. He'll just sit with his loser friends instead, she thought as she made her way to the library. It was already the beginning of lunch; the hallway was empty of noisy students. She was a bit nervous; part of her wanted to go to the lunchroom and forget this stupid idea. But she was determined.  
  
She walked past the checkout desk, and looked around. There were a few people around; some were at the tables doing homework or gossiping, while others were on the computers. As she walked by, Gaz noticed one of her classmates was online looking at a porn site. He made no attempt to hide what he was doing.  
  
"Perv."  
  
Gaz contemplated telling on him, but then dropped it. It's not my problem, she thought, walking towards the Music and Arts section of the library. Besides, it wasn't like he was the first guy at school to use those computers for a cheap thrill. She'd even caught Dib not too long ago. His reaction had been priceless...she had gotten behind him and poked him. He had screamed like a girl, fallen off his chair, and swore that his friends dared him. Right, Dib...it was a dare. Gaz chuckled to herself.  
  
She walked past the reference section and saw a couple making out, which made her gag. They had their hands all over each other, and she could've sworn the guy was unbuttoning his girlfriend's blouse. "Get a room," she muttered, "or at least get to the backseat of a car."  
  
Gaz kept walking, and upon seeing that particular section looming ahead, dread started to fill her; what if he wasn't there? Maybe I should have signed my name on that stupid note, she thought. But I did warn him...  
  
She was there. All she needed to do was turn the corner.  
  
"No going back."  
  
Gaz held her breath and walked into the section....  
  
No one was there.  
  
Gaz exhaled and felt a little disappointed.  
  
"I shouldn't be surprised," she said to herself, sitting on the carpeted floor, and leaning her head on a shelf. She sighed.  
  
"Maybe I'll just have to try something else later."  
  
Gaz fumbled with her book bag, trying to get at her Game Slave. However, she spied a book about calligraphy on the shelf she was leaning against, pulled it out and started looking through it.  
  
"Might as well take advantage of being here."  
  
As she flipped through the pages, she heard a familiar voice.  
  
"Where is the Music and Art section?!! Tell me!!"  
  
"Young man," she heard one of the librarians say, "this a library. We don't yell in here."  
  
"Fool, I am ZIM!! I do as I please!!"  
  
Gaz dropped the book, got up and went to the checkout counter. Zim was still arguing with the librarian. She shook her head as she planted herself next to him. She grabbed Zim's wrist and gave him a look of annoyance. The expression on his face obviously showed that he was surprised to see her.  
  
"Ma'am...he's with me. I'll make sure he keeps quiet."  
  
"See that you do," said the woman haughtily, as she went back to reading the Cosmo that was in front of her.  
  
Wordlessly, Gaz pulled Zim back to where she had been waiting for him. Zim wouldn't shut up.  
  
"Did you leave that note in my locker? What is the meaning of all this? Why aren't you saying anything?"  
  
She pulled him into the Music and Art section, and sat back on the floor, pulling him down in a sitting position right next to her. Zim was about to ask the same questions again when she put her hand over his mouth.  
  
"You're giving me a headache," she grumbled, rubbing her temple. "I'm going to answer you're questions, but first, you need to promise that you'll let me do the talking first. If you promise, I'll take my hand from you're mouth and I won't destroy you. Promise?"  
  
Zim scowled at her, but nodded. She slowly removed her hand, and was about to speak...  
  
...Until Zim instantly started talking again.  
  
"Did your brother put you up to this?!"  
  
She shot him a look that could've killed. He finally clammed up.  
  
"Yes, I sent you that letter. And this was NOT Dib's idea. Look, the reason I wanted to meet up with you is...well...uh...um..."  
  
Gaz nervously played with her necklace, looking for right words to say to him, but they just didn't seem to come out right. Zim looked at her impatiently.  
  
"Well?"  
  
She decided to be as blunt as possible.  
  
"We should be friends."  
  
There, she thought, short and sweet.  
  
Zim just looked at her as if she'd grown another head.  
  
"Friends? Why would I need friends, human," he ranted loudly, shaking his fists in the air. "An invader needs no one!!! No one!!!"  
  
Everyone nearby looked up from what they had been doing and stared at Zim; he put his hands down and stared back at them. He then turned to look at Gaz, who just watched him intently.  
  
You're not an invader, said a small voice inside of him. Remember? You're all alone.  
  
He squeezed his eyes shut.  
  
"I don't need anyone," he quietly choked out.  
  
Gaz started to get angry, and could feel her blood boiling.  
  
"You don't need anyone? You don't need anyone?! "  
  
Gaz knew she was getting loud and people were now looking at her, but she couldn't help it. She felt like grabbing Zim by his shirt and slapping sense into him.  
  
"So you didn't need anyone when Dib almost beat the crap out of you yesterday, huh? Huh?! You really handled that well on your own."  
  
As soon as she had said all that, Gaz started to wish she hadn't...at least not as harshly.  
  
Zim looked down at his hands. Gaz kept looking at the alien, and couldn't help but feel some sympathy for him. He looked even more depressed now than he did yesterday. You do need someone, she thought. Why are you being so stubborn about it though?  
  
"Look, Zim," she said in her toughest voice, "I didn't waste my lunch and game playing time to have you say 'no' to me."  
  
Zim raised his eyes back to Gaz, and saw in her face that she wasn't kidding around.  
  
"Is that suppose to scare me, human?"  
  
Gaz could hear uncertainty in his voice. He's scared, she thought, this is all new to him. He doesn't know if he should trust me. Cautiously, she put her hand on his shoulder. Surprisingly, Zim didn't shrink away from her touch. Their eyes met. He got the same feeling all over him like when Penelope had rested her hands on him during the dream. It was almost comforting...  
  
What am I thinking, he thought, she's human!! The Dib-worm's younger sister! I can't trust her!!  
  
"Why are you doing this," he asked her accusingly, suddenly pulling away.  
  
Gaz ignored him and looked at the clock on the wall. Lunch was almost over.  
  
"Listen, Zim. You're just gonna have to trust me."  
  
She stood up and straightened her skirt. Then she offered her hand to Zim to help him up. He pushed it aside and tried to get up on his own, grabbing hold of a shelf and knocking down a couple of books in the process. Gaz rolled her eyes. This was going to a lot harder than she had anticipated.  
  
"So, Zim," Gaz said, "I'll be coming over your house after school. You better be there."  
  
Zim was completely shocked by this.  
  
"What?! No!! Never!!"  
  
But Zim's protest fell on deaf ears. Gaz was already walking out of the library.  
  
He heard the bell ring, and walked out of the library along with others.  
  
"What have I gotten myself into?" 


	7. The Visit

A new chapter is up!! YAY!!! Sorry if I took so long, but a lot has been going on. I start school again tomorrow (Sept. 8th), so you all will have to be a little patient with me, especially since I'll be working at an internship. I'll try to post new chapters as soon as humanly possible. As for this chapter, more conversation between Gaz and Zim; cute moments here and there. You'll see what I mean. Again, hope it's not OOC. So, enjoy!!

I don't own of any of the characters, only the plot and IZ t-shirts in my closet.

Hee.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXThe VisitXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Gaz walked down the street, towards the familiar little green house that Zim lived in. It had to be one of the few times she was going by there without Dib; he probably decided to go out with his friends and blow off some steam, she thought. During one of the passing periods, she ran into her brother. Dib (who was in a very pissed off mood) told her how, because of Zim, he was stuck having lunch with the art teacher for the next few days. When Dib went into details about why exactly he ended up with this punishment, Gaz laughed in his face.

"Serves you right for being a moron."

Dib was already angry and he didn't need his little sister to intensify it.

"I try to save the world, and I get in trouble for it?! It's not fair!"

"Save the world? You just don't give up, do you?!"

"Gaz..."

"Zim wasn't the one going around soaking people, Dib! Besides, from what you told me, Zim didn't do anything to deserve being tortured by you."

Dib glared at her.

"I forgot...you're defending evil aliens now, right?"

He didn't say anything else to her, and just stalked off to his last class. That was a sure sign that he wasn't going home with her this afternoon.

"This is too perfect," she said to herself, walking off to her class.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

There are those stupid lawn gnomes, Gaz thought to herself, as she approached the weird house that was dwarfed by the larger buildings that surrounded it. She never quite understood how Zim could've thought that putting a bunch of weird crap and signs that proclaimed 'I Love Earth' on his front lawn would help him blend in with humans. Then again, she mused, look at his stupid disguise. Gaz was able to walk past the gnomes without them shooting lasers at her, and decided it was a good sign that Zim was going to go along with her idea. Either that, or the stupid things were malfunctioning.

She got to the door and rang the bell.

"Well, here goes risk number two."

The door opened, but no one was there. Gaz walked in anyway, and was surprised to have something jump at her, making her fall to the floor on her back. She looked up and saw a small, green, cute puppy staring at her.

"Hi," it squealed to her. "You're the big head kid's sister!! Want a burrito?"

Gaz slowly sat up, rubbing the back of her head.

"I remember you. Gir, right? You're Zim's dog-robot thing."

"Yaaay!! You remembered!! Weeeeeeee-hoooooo!!!!"

Gir jumped off Gaz and ran around the living room, screaming his little head off. She just sat there and watched.

And watched.

And watched.

And watched some more.

After about ten minutes of this, she got a little bored.

"Okay...um...is Zim home?"

The strange, little dog thing stopped dead in his tracks.

"Want me to get him?!"

Gaz shrugged.

"Yeah. Thanks."

She watched him run off, in search of its master. She got up off the floor and looked around the room.

"Just as strange as the outside," she muttered, as she took a seat on the couch. As she waited, she thought about her little plan and her real motive behind it. I do want to help Zim out, she thought, but is it bad if I have more to gain? And what is taking Zim so long?

"This could take a while."

She pulled out her Game Slave and started to play.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Zim was in his room, lying on his bed and looking at the ceiling, again. He heaved a big, heavy sigh. He had no desire to ever get up from his bed; he just wanted to lie there and wait for death or some kind of disaster to come take him away...which ever came first. He grabbed a pillow and buried his face in it.

Zim had gotten home, and rushed to his lab to plan a grand scheme for world conquest, as was his habit everyday after school. But he soon was reminded that there was no need for that planning anymore.

"Whatcha doing," Gir asked when he went down to the lab, while sucking on a Pixie Stick. He kept peeking over Zim's shoulder and made slurping noises.

Zim shuddered in disgust.

"If you must know, I'm trying to figure out how to bring DOOM upon the heads of these filthy creatures!"

Zim then went back to his work, trying to ignore Gir.

"Oooooooohhhhh....," was the reply. Gir sucked on his candy and looked at Zim for a couple of minutes. "Why you doing that?"

Irritated, Zim turned back to Gir.

"Because it's part of the mission, Gir! To take over this disgusting planet!!"

"Oooooooooohhhhh...."

Gir continued to eat his candy. Another thought occurred to him, but before he could say anything, Zim turned to him.

"What now, Gir" he roared. The little robot stopped sucking on the candy straw and looked up at Zim.

"But it's over, remember?"

"Eh?"

"I heard you talking to The Tallest last night. It's over, isn't it?!"

It dawned upon him what Gir was talking about. All he could do was stand there, steadying himself by holding on to his work table.

"It's over, it's over, it's over...!!!"

Gir left the lab singing, leaving Zim alone. He dropped the tool he held in his hand and heard it clatter on the floor. He sunk to the floor, pulled his knees to his chest and put his head down.

"What's wrong with me," he said himself. "Am I so pathetic that I am now repressing my failure?"

He stayed in that position for some time, just feeling crappy and incredibly sorry for himself. Finally, he was able to get up. He took the elevator upstairs and went into his bedroom to lie down. And he was still lying there when Gir bounded into the room.

"Guess who's here," asked the little robot, jumping on Zim's bed.

"Stop jumping on the bed, Gir. And what are you talking about?"

"Dib's sister is here!!" He stopped jumping. "She's pretty, too!"

Zim took the pillow off his face and gaped at Gir.

"She's _here_?"

"Yup, and she wants to see you!" Gir started jumping on the bed again.

Zim sat up. He had completely forgotten that the human had invited herself to his base!

"Gir!! Stop jumping on the bed!"

Zim threw a pillow at him, missing him completely. He wanted to tell Gir to get rid off the girl; he didn't feel like dealing with anyone, especially the sister of his enemy. Before he could figure out what to do next, he heard a light knock at the door. Both Zim and Gir looked up, as it slowly opened to reveal a slightly amused Gaz standing in the doorway, with her arms crossed.

"Were you thinking of coming down anytime soon, or did you want me to come to your room?"

All three heard a beep coming from downstairs. It sounded like a microwave...

"Yaaaay," squealed Gir, hopping off the bed. "Buuurriitttoooo!!"

He ran out the door to get his snack, leaving Gaz and Zim alone. Zim just stared at the girl, wondering what was going to happen. He then realized something was wrong.

"Zim?"

He slowly turned his head and there on the nightstand, laid his contact lenses and wig. He had taken them off when he came into his room earlier, and had just forgotten them. Zim's reaction did not escape Gaz. He was obviously freaking out because she was seeing him without his disguise. She saw him reach for them, half of him hanging off the edge of his bed.

"Zim...you don't have to do that."

He stayed frozen, still reaching for his disguise, but his attention on Gaz. She started to walk towards him.

"I know, Zim. I've always known. How do you think I knew not to hit you with water yesterday? You don't need that stuff."

After a few minutes, Zim finally put his arm down, but kept looking at Gaz. He was leaning so close to the edge of the bed, that when he attempted to get up, he lost his balance, fell off his bed, hit his head on the corner of the nightstand and fell on the floor, flat on his face. Without meaning to, Gaz started to snicker. When Zim wasn't getting up, she started to feel a hint of guilt.

"C'mon, I'll help you," Gaz offered, holding back her laughter the best she could.

Zim was embarrassed and angry; he just stayed where he was.

"No! Go away!!"

"Stop being such a baby," she said, stooping down to help him up.

"Leave!!!"

Apparently, that did it. He heard the door slam shut and footsteps.

She was gone. And that was perfectly fine with him. Or at least, it should have been.

Part of him was relieved that the human had left him (and his base) without making a big commotion but, at the same time, wished that she had insisted even harder on staying. It was a welcome distraction to the misery he had been feeling. Gaz _had_ been treating him kindly lately, in her own, strange way. Still, it's a lot more than anyone has ever shown him (not counting Gir). But he had viciously kicked her out, and who knows if she would use that as a reason to make his life even more miserable? She'll probably side with that Dib-human, he thought.

Zim sighed and slowly pushed himself up. An awful pain went through his head. He felt something warm dripping down the side of his face and saw a purple smear on the floor. Blood. Damn, he thought. He had to have hit his head really hard for him to be bleeding. Help...he needed help.

"Where's Gir? I must summon him."

That's when he saw something that stunned him. There, sitting by the door watching him, was Gaz. She had never left.

"Are you okay?"

All Zim could manage was a weak nod, ignoring his bloody forehead. The human stayed, he thought, even after I yelled at her. Why?

Gaz got up, and sat next to him, looking a little concerned. He couldn't bring himself to face her; he kept looking straight ahead. When he didn't respond, Gaz gingerly put her hand under his chin and turned his head so he would face her. He was shaking a little, but she couldn't figure if it was from pain or fear. She looked at his wound and then with her free hand, found some tissues in her book bag to wipe the blood off his face. The gash was bleeding, but it didn't look serious in a life threatening kind of way. She pulled out a bandana from her bag, folded it up as best she could and placed it on the injury.

"Don't worry...it doesn't look so bad." Gaz gave Zim a small smile and put her hand on his cheek as if to further reassure him. Whoa, did I just do that, she thought. Shocked at what she just did, Gaz drew her hand back.

Gaz considered leaving; how hard is it to keep pressure on a bleeding forehead? At the same time, she knew would worry about the alien if she left now. Her thoughts were interrupted by a question.

"Why?"

Gaz focused back on Zim.

"What?"

"Why are you doing this?"

Not this again, she thought, keeping pressure on his forehead.

"Because you were gonna bleed all over your nice, clean floor."

"That's not what I meant."

She sighed and rolled her eyes skywards. Why me? Gaz looked back at Zim.

"Because having a friend won't kill you, and you look like you needed one anyway. Can you lie down? My arm is going numb."

Zim did as he was told, to her astonishment, but he put his head on her lap, which surprised her. Gaz's face slowly turned red, but she didn't push him off. He doesn't know any better, she thought, so don't worry about it. Zim's large ruby eyes stared up at her. He saw something in her eyes that he hadn't noticed before. They look so...warm, he thought.

"You didn't look repulsed just now when..."

Gaz shook her head.

"It's no big deal. I've seen worse."

"But the BLOOD!!"

Gaz shrugged.

"I've seen lots of that, too. And, no, it doesn't bother me that it's alien blood." She paused a beat. "I was wondering...how old are you?"

"Why do you want to know?"

"Because I couldn't think of anything better to talk about and I just wanna know."

"Irken or Human years?"

"Human."

Gaz watched him as he appeared to be figuring it out in his head.

"I'm about 17." He paused. "Can I ask you a question?"

"Sure."

"Why do you act mean with other humans? You never seem comfortable around them."

Gaz was taken aback by the question. Had he paid attention to her before she got the nerve to talk to him? She didn't think he would have bothered to observe her.

"I'm not very good with people. I haven't had the best experiences with them, so I find it better if I keep them away."

"You seem comfortable with me."

"Maybe because you aren't human. Or maybe because you understand exactly where I'm coming from."

"Hmm," was his response. "How did you know? I mean, that I'm not...well, human?"

Gaz laughed a little and then stopped abruptly, not wanting to offend him.

"Well, aside from the constant rants from my older brother, I've seen you without your disguise a couple of times before, and I've seen enough in the time I've known you to know that you're not human."

"This doesn't bother you?"

"I'm having a decent conversation with you and helping you heal," she pointed out. "What do you think?"

Gaz put a hand on one of Zim's hands.

"It doesn't bother me at all."

A look of relief crossed his face.

They both got quiet; they could hear Gir watching TV downstairs. They both had been in the same position for some time. Zim was nodding off. Gaz wondered if the bleeding had stopped. There was only one way to find out...

"I think you stopped bleeding," she said, carefully looking under the makeshift bandage.

"Don't sound surprised! After all, I..."

"...Am Zim. I know, I know."

He gave her a small smile, which she shyly returned.

Gaz looked at her watch. 5:05. Still plenty of time before I need to get home, she figured.

"Can I ask you something else?"

"Of course. What do you wish to know?"

"What's wrong with you? You haven't been yourself. You look depressed when I see you at school and that thing with Dib... you just let him pick on you..."

Zim pulled away immediately. She had hit a nerve.

"Zim?"

He sat up and the bandage came off. The bleeding had stopped, just a bluish purple bruise on his forehead now.

"I have...uh...stuff to do. I think you should leave."

Zim got on his feet and opened the door. Reluctantly, Gaz stood up and got her bag.

"Ok. I guess I'll see you tomorrow then."

She walked out the bedroom, expecting him to say something, like "bye" or "thank you." The door slammed shut.

"There's gratitude for you," she muttered angrily, going downstairs.

Gaz came into the living room and found Gir still glued to the TV, with what looked like another burrito. He didn't notice her walk by or didn't hear her close the door as she left the house.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"So, you came back."

Zim stood before a large rock that Penelope was sitting on. The moonlight seemed to shine directly on her.

"You can sit down if you want. The rock is big enough."

He found himself obeying her. So much for taking control, he bitterly thought. He sat there, with a melancholy look on his face.

"What's eating you?"

"Ahhhh!! Something's eating me!! Ahhh!!"

Zim jumped off the rock and started screaming, while waving his arms around in a panic. He collided into something and fell back. It was Penelope, and she stood over him.

"I didn't mean that literally. Get up. What I meant is what's bothering you?"

Zim sat back on the rock, with Penelope sitting next to him. He didn't talk.

"Are you going to answer my question?"

He still didn't say anything.

"I know you did not come back here to just sit on a rock." She paused. "Whatever you tell me doesn't leave this beach."

Zim looked at her.

"I swear it."

Apparently that was enough to convince Zim. He found himself telling this mysterious person everything about Dib, school, and the whole thing that happened with Gaz. But he didn't tell her _everything_.

"I don't see what's wrong with being friends with this Gaz girl. Why did you throw her out?"

Zim turned away.

"That's not important."

"Oh, really? Try me. Tell me why."

Zim couldn't help it; she had control in this world.

"She kept asking."

"Asking what?"

Zim turned back to Penelope.

"Gaz wants to know why I've been acting unusual, and I cannot tell the human I was..."

He couldn't get the words out; it was too much.

"Just say it!"

"I was fooled...tricked by my superiors. Now I'm banished from Irk and stuck on Earth."

There. He had finally told someone, even if she was an illusion.

"Why couldn't you tell Gaz that? I doubt she would have cared."

"But...but she's human!! She could turn against me and use that information!!"

"I think you're paranoid. She did help you when you got hurt, right?"

"Yeah..."

"And she didn't do anything that would make you think she was going to harm you, right?"

"Yeah..."

Penelope stayed quiet, as if thinking hard about something.

"When you said you wanted to die the other night, was that the reason behind it? The whole being mislead by your leaders, I mean."

"Yes," he said, knowing that it was only part of the reason. Fortunately, she didn't press him any further about it.

"I see. It's not going to hurt if you get close to this girl, human or not. And if you tell her the real reason regarding your behavior, I'm more than positive nothing bad will happen. You just have to give it a chance."

"Mmm," was his only reply.

Penelope stood up.

"Hey, you took a chance in coming back to see me."

She started to walk towards the water.

"I'll see you soon," she called to him, disappearing before his eyes.


	8. The Gesture

Wow...it's been a while but I haven't given up on my story. See? Another chapter and it's long. School has been a killer, so this may be the last chapter until I get out for break (5 more weeks!!) So enjoy kids!!

I don't really like this chapter, but you guys tell me.

Don't own any of it; never mine, never was...

Now, on with the story!!

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXTheGestureXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Gaz woke up to the sound of her alarm clock at 7 the following morning.  
  
"Make it stop," she grumbled groggily, smacking the snooze button on her clock.  
  
She pulled the thick covers off her head, just to be blinded by the sunlight streaming through her window.  
  
"Ugh," she uttered, cursing herself for forgetting to lower her shade last night, but she had had too much on her mind then. The whole thing with Zim...just when things were beginning to get better, it got worse.

"Like every part of my miserable life."

Gaz sat up and swung her legs to the edge of the bed, feeling the softness of the rug beneath her bare feet. She remembered that it was Friday...so close to the end of this insufferable week, she realized.  
  
"Might as well get this day over with," she muttered, rising and heading to the bathroom. Gaz kept stumbling as she walked, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes.  
  
Dib wasn't around to beat her there like he always did. Either he came home real late, she thought, or he's real wasted. But she didn't bother to check. Gaz walked into the bathroom, turned on the sink faucet and washed her face. It wasn't something she did regularly, just whenever it occurred to her. Gaz splashed her face with the cool water, becoming fully awake in the process. She pulled a towel off the rack.  
  
As she dried her face, Gaz tried hard not to remember how she felt last night coming home from Zim's, and even harder to forget how she had gotten her release from them.  
  
"I was stupid for even thinking this would work."  
  
She sighed, but was brought back to the present. Gaz realized that she hadn't seen Dib yet and decided to check if he was still breathing. Leaving the bathroom, she suddenly stopped, as if she had forgotten something, and went back in.  
  
She pulled out the first aid kit and went through it, sifting through it's contents, and finally finding what she needed.  
  
Just in case, she thought, wrapping her wrist with the bandage she brought out.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**  
  
Dib heard shuffling outside his door and opened one eye.  
  
"It can't be morning already..."  
  
He rolled on his back and tried to sit up, but everything started to spin. He immediately laid back down. Dib felt his head throbbing and his stomach churning wildly. That's the last time I drink that much while I'm pissed off, he vowed mentally, getting angry at Zim is not worth feeling this crappy. Debating whether or not he should try getting up again, he heard knocking at his door, which made his headache feel worse.  
  
"Dib! You better be alive in there!"  
  
It was Gaz.  
  
"I'm up," he called weakly, but he wanted to just stay in his bed and sleep off his hangover.

He and his friends had been at Cal's last night, just bumming around and watching TV. Everybody was getting bored, so Cal brought out the beers. Dib was the only one who didn't accept one, which prompted some taunting from the others.

"Can't hold your liquor, Dib," Res said, in between chugs. "Or are you still licking your wounds over getting punked by that green freak?"

"Aww, stop that," Cal said in a baby voice, putting his arm around Dib. "Can't you see wittle Dibby is getting gwumpy?"

Everyone laughed at this, and Dib became angry, not at these people who teased him, but at himself for taking this crap from everyone and at Zim for being the cause of it all. He pushed Cal's arm away.

"I think we hit a nerve!" Cal laughed, sounding pretty buzzed.

Dib angrily reached for a beer. If I'm gonna be listening to this, he thought, I might as well be too drunk to care.

This morning, he was regretting that choice.

Dib slowly got up from bed and managed to get all the way into the bathroom, grasping onto anything that would keep him from falling on his face. How many did I drink, he wondered, but went back on concentrating towards his goal. When he finally made it inside, he sat by the toilet. I have to go to school, he thought. I have to get my revenge against Zim. He heard his stomach rumble, and he immediately bent to the toilet and retched. Dib wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. Steadying himself, he got up to brush his teeth.  
  
"I'm not gonna let a hangover get in the way. He will pay...as soon as I figure out how."

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

"Dad?"

Gaz had walked into the kitchen to grab her usual sugary cereal, but there, making breakfast, was her father, still in his lab coat and goggles. She hadn't seen him for, what felt like, days.

"Hello, Gaz. Thought I'd make you kids a special breakfast before I left for work."

She looked at her father with an incredulous look, before sitting down at the kitchen table.

"What time did you get in?"

Prof. Membrane set two plates on the table, one for her and the other apparently for Dib. Eggs and toast. Real special, Dad, she thought, poking at her meal with a fork.

"About an hour ago. Thought I spend some quality time with you and your brother."

He looked at the vacant seat next to Gaz.

"Where is your brother?"

"In the bathroom, probably with his massive head in the toliet," she responded. "Aren't you going to stay and eat with us?"

"No time. I got to get back to the lab and study those cultures of the common cold. I may be close to a breakthrough!!!"

Prof. Membrane turned back to his daughter and patted her head.

"Tell your brother to study hard, keep flossing and don't get into trouble. Same goes for you."

He promptly left, leaving Gaz to continue poking at her eggs, with a downcast expression on her face.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Dib was still in the bathroom, sitting on the edge of the bathtub. He was starting to feel somewhat better.

"I can do this. All I need to do is change real quick, walk to school and survive the next 7 hours. It's not impossible."

He heard the door open and looked up.

Gaz poked her head in, and then opened the door wide open. She crossed her arms and stared at him.  
  
"Dad made some breakfast before he left for work."

Dib was flabbergasted by this bit of news, forgetting for a moment that he was still suffering from his hangover.

"Dad? Here?" He paused a beat. "What did he make?"

A devilish grin appeared on her face.

"See for yourself," she replied, walking out. She then made a quick turn and said, "I hope you like your eggs soft boiled and extra runny!"  
  
Gaz ran off and Dib turned a sickly green.  
  
"Maybe I'll stay home," he decided, rushing over to the toilet.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**  
  
Gaz grabbed her book bag and saw her brother making his way down the stairs, still in his rumpled clothes from the previous evening. She raised an eyebrow.  
  
"Guess you had too many beers last night, huh?"  
  
Dib didn't say anything. Gaz continued to speak.  
  
"There's some toast on the table. You should eat that."  
  
"I'm not going to school today."  
  
Gaz looked at him.  
  
"So?"  
  
"So, I want you to do me a _big _favor and keep in eye on..."

Gaz rolled her eyes and headed out the door.  
  
"...Zim."

The door slammed shut behind her. Dib sighed.

"I guess I'll have to find some other way to keep track of Zim."

He felt pangs of hunger hit him all of a sudden, but he wasn't about to go eat anything that would make him rush back to the bathroom.

Dib went into the kitchen and saw the toast on the table. He picked up a piece and stuffed it in his mouth. He started to cough and gag.

"Too dry!"

He went through the refrigerator, looking for something to drink and found a can of ginger ale.

"Not what I wanted, but better than nothing."

Dib grabbed a glass from the cabinent and poured out the drink into it.

He found his mind drifting...  
  
_"Here, Dibby. Drink this and you'll feel better."  
  
The little boy griped the glass and drank the cool liquid. He looked up at his mother with his large, brown eyes.  
  
"Mommy...can you tell me a story?"  
  
The young woman smiled down at her son, and felt his forehead. His fever was going down.  
  
"Well," she started, pulling him on her lap, "which one do you want to hear today?"  
  
"The Loch Ness Monster!"  
  
He's mother laughed, not surprised at his request. Her laugh had always sounded like the tinkling of bells to him.  
  
"You got it, sweetie."  
  
As she started the story, Dib snuggled close to his mother, enjoying just being with her. He sighed contently._  
  
Dib looked back at the counter and saw his glass was overflowing.  
  
"Damn..." he muttered, grabbing some paper towels to soak up the liquid, making sure none of it spilled on the floor.  
  
It was the first time he had let himself think about his mother in a long time and it was still painfully hard. He waded up the wet towels and tossed them in the trash. Dib then picked up the glass and took a sip.  
  
"I don't want to forget," he said, ignoring the tears he felt threatening to fall. "But it's hard to remember you, Mom, and then act like everything is okay."  
  
He took his glasses off, rubbed his sleeve across his eyes and sniffled. This is why it's better to not remember, he chastised himself.  
  
After composing himself, Dib took another piece of toast and his ginger ale, and walked out to the living room. There had to be something good on TV this early in the morning...

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**  
  
Gaz fumbled with her locker, wary of the possibility of running into Zim. He was the last being she wanted to see right then. She couldn't shake off last night.  
  
She finally opened her locker and stuck in her hand to reach for her gym uniform. Gaz envied her brother. He might be suffering a hangover, but at least he didn't have to run laps today. Gaz pulled out her uniform out and saw a familiar piece of fabric tumble out of her locker and into her hands.  
  
It was the bandana she had used on Zim yesterday when he hurt his head.  
  
"But...how?"  
  
She was dumbfounded, and couldn't for the life of her figure out how Zim had gotten it in there. It was not like he could have pushed it in through one of the vents. Slowly turning the blue and purple cloth in her hands, she noticed that it wasn't stained. It looked clean and freshly washed. Maybe he had Gir wash it, she deduced. Gaz put the cloth near her face and a smile spread across her face.

It smelled like Downy.  
  
"Just like Mommy used."  
  
The scent brought back memories of hot cocoa after school and silly bedtime stories only her mom could tell. Gaz stood there, with a happy dazed look on her face. Then, as quickly as the smile appeared, it changed to a dark expression. She slammed her locker door shut and stalked off towards Zim's locker.  
  
Zim had been by his locker, waiting for Gaz to open her locker and find the surprise inside. He had to get to school earlier than normal to get into her locker and leave the bandana where she could see it. He couldn't believe his good fortune when he saw her smile; he couldn't help but smile himself. Now she was coming in his direction. I, Zim, have fixed everything, he thought, these human relationships are not so difficult to master. But before he could gloat out loud about his success...  
  
"How dare you?!'  
  
"Eh?"  
  
"How dare you go into my locker?"  
  
For a moment, Zim stood speechless. This was not the reaction he had expected. Where was the smile? The appreciation? The never-ending admiration?! Gaz was fuming, to say the least.  
  
"Aren't you going to give me an answer?"  
  
Now Zim was getting angry. He did something nice for this human that stood before him, and this is how she thanked him?  
  
"You should be showering me with praises!!!"

"What?"  
  
"Stupid human," he started angrily, "can't you see I was trying to be nice?"

Gaz's eyes got wide.  
  
"By breaking into my locker?"  
  
Gaz put her face dangerously close to his and clenched her fists.  
  
"No one goes into my stuff. I like MY PRIVACY!!!"  
  
As angry as he was at that moment, Zim was deeply confused. How could doing a kind gesture get him into this situation? Was she really that mad about her stupid locker? He heard himself utter, "I'm sorry," to Gaz, words he had never heard himself say.  
  
She stopped her yelling and looked at him closely, making him feel uncomfortable.  
  
"Do you know why you are sorry?"  
  
Zim gulped. He wasn't even sure anymore.  
  
"Because I left that cloth thing in your locker without you knowing?"

He looked at her expectedly.

"Right," she muttered and walked away. Zim trudged off to his class more lost than ever.  
  
"What's the point in doing something nice for these filthy creatures?"

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**  
  
Gaz sat on the floor in the Music and Art section of the school library, with a book of oil paintings opened on her lap. But she was barely reading it, stuck on the same page for the last 10 minutes. It was hard to concentrate; all she thought about was how angry she had been with Zim that morning, wondering if he had really deserved that outburst from her. After all, he had done something really sweet, something he didn't need to do. But this is the same guy who kicked me out off his house after I had helped him, she reminded herself. He had it coming to him.

"But I at least could've told him why I was really pissed."  
  
Frustrated, Gaz stuck her hand in her coat pocket, brushing the bandana. She pulled her hand back out quickly and tried focusing on her book, but it was no use.  
  
"Damn," she sighed.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**  
  
Zim walked towards the lunchroom after art class, not really paying any attention to his surroundings. Dib wasn't in school today and that should have put him in the best possible mood. But all he could think about was Gaz and how he had possibly screwed things up even further between them.  
  
Nothing was going right. Maybe, he pondered, I just should have gone through with killing myself.  
  
He punched a fist into his hand.  
  
"These filthy humans and their emotions are getting the best of me!!"  
  
He didn't notice the weird looks he was getting as he was walking into the cafeteria. Zim was disgusted with himself at letting Gaz put this strange hold over him, but it was something he couldn't help. Whenever he was around her, he didn't get that horrible pain. The only other person who had that affect on him was Penelope, but she wasn't real.  
  
He didn't want to admit it, but Gaz was growing on him.  
  
Zim dropped the lunch tray that he had just picked up, and walked quickly out the lunchroom. He made a beeline for the stairs and went up to the second floor, not having a clue what was going to happen next.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Gaz started to flip through the book, trying to keep her mind off Zim, when she had the strange feeling that she was being watched. She looked up. There weren't too many people in the library. The day being unusually warm, everyone was outside enjoying the weather. Then, she saw him.  
  
He was cautiously peeking behind a large world atlas, from a nearby table. Gaz quickly looked back at her book, not wanting him to realize that she knew he was there. She had keep from cracking a smile or laughing, which was hard since it looked so obvious that he was spying on her.  
  
Zim stared at the violet-haired girl sitting on the floor. He contemplated what he should. Should he apologize again? Come clean about his secret? He couldn't do that, not when he'd been conditioned for as long as he could remember to work out his problems himself, and he was very careful to not depend on someone for help. It was suppose to be something beneath him.  
  
But maybe, he thought, this is not one of those times....

He drummed his hand on the table, pondering like mad.

Gaz looked back up at Zim, and gave a little sigh. Looking at him, she couldn't believe this was the same egotistical maniac who was always coming up with some crazed idea to gain control of the planet. In just a matter of days, it seems like he has fallen off his pedestal. He looked so forlorn now...like he was in need of someone to take him by the hand and just be there. Maybe this someone was her.  
  
She closed her eyes.  
  
"It can't be," she said harshly. "Not when I need someone to hold my hand."  
  
Gaz went back to her book, trying to focus on it, but felt someone coming into the section. Whoever it was, sat next to her. Of course, she didn't need to look up to see who it was. But she was a little surprised by what came next.  
  
"I was tricked into coming to this planet," Zim began quietly.  
  
Gaz looked at him, but didn't respond.  
  
"I was a nuisance to the leaders in my planet, so they shipped me to a planet that was as far from Irk as possible. There was no invasion planned for Earth...they just wanted to be rid of me and I've also been banished from my home planet."  
  
Zim watched as Gaz slowly closed her book, with no real expression on her face.  
  
"Why are you telling me this?"  
  
"You asked me yesterday," he said matter-of-factly, "so it was only right that I answered."  
  
"Okay...," was all she replied.  
  
"And I am sorry about going into your locker; I like my privacy too."

Gaz just nodded as he finished, or so she thought. Zim had one more thing to say.

"And I'm sorry how I acted yesterday," Zim said, catching Gaz's attention. "If I would've known worm babies like you got offended so easily..."  
  
"Offended so easily," she caught, peeved by this sorry attempt of an apology. "You acted like a jerk! How was I supposed to react?! You didn't even thank me!"  
  
"Thank you?! You stayed there of your own free well! I didn't beg you to stay!"  
  
"You didn't need to!!"  
  
Zim eyes widened a little.  
  
"What do you mean?"  
  
Gaz bit her lip. He was so clueless.  
  
"I was worried about you. It was funny when you fell, but I got scared when you didn't get up. I couldn't have left you there, bleeding all over the place, even if you think that you don't need anyone."  
  
Both didn't say anything for a long time.  
  
Finally, Gaz broke the silence.  
  
"Thanks for giving me back my bandana."  
  
"Uh, thanks for staying with me yesterday," he said lamely, not looking at her.  
  
Gaz took hold of Zim's left hand and pulled out her bandana. She deftly wrapped it around his wrist, securing it with one of the safety pins that decorated her book bag. He gave her a questioning look.  
  
"I want you to hold on to this for now," she said. "Think of it as a sign that we're friends now."

"But I have nothing to give you."

Gaz whacked him on his shoulder.

"You don't have to. Friends don't owe each other."

Zim couldn't grasp that concept.

"No. I owe you, not only for this cloth, but for yesterday as well."

She knew he would keep insisting regardless of what she said, and came up with an idea.

"What do you know about chemistry?"

"I know more than that pitiful Earth creature that I had as a teacher," he announced for all to hear.

Gaz whacked him again.

"Shut up," she warned, noticing the librarian was staring at them angrily. Gaz turned back to Zim. "You can repay me by tutoring me in chem. I just failed my last test and need to do well on the make-up exam and the next test after that, if I want to get a decent grade. Will you help me?"

Zim crossed his arms in front of him.

"Fine, human. I accept this challenge!"

Gaz wondered if this was good idea all of a sudden, but the possibilty of a higher grade pushed her doubts away.

"Okay. After school. Your base."


End file.
